Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung proposed, at ASEAN+1 and ASEAN+3 Summits in Cebu of the Philippines on January 14, boosting cooperation between ASEAN bloc and dialogue countries namely China, Japan, the Republic of Korea (RoK) and India in economics, trade, as well as in transnational issues such as the bird flu epidemic, natural calamities, and energy security.
Dung also called on dialogue countries at the 10th ASEAN +3 summit to continue giving support to ASEAN countries, particularly in infrastructure construction, poverty reduction and scientific and technological development.
At the summits, the leaders of dialogue countries congratulated Vietnam on its official membership of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
At the ASEAN +3 summit, all leaders agreed that the next ASEAN+3 Summit slated for late 2007 would issue the second joint statement on East Asian cooperation with strategic and comprehensive orientations for the ASEAN+3 process and East Asian cooperation in the years to come, towards the long-term goal of building an East Asian community.
At the ASEAN+1 Summit, Leaders of ASEAN and China vowed to soon sign the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC) for peace and stability in the region, and build ASEAN-China free trade area. The two sides also signed the agreement on Trade in Services of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area, the Plan of Action to implement the Beijing declaration on ASEAN-China Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Cooperation Partnership for Common Development, and the Memorandum of Understanding between ASEAN and China on Agriculture Cooperation.
ASEAN and Japan’s leaders agreed to set up an ASEAN-Japan Eminent Persons Group (EPG) which will be designed to review the ASEAN-Japan relationship that has been running well for the last 30 years and to study and raise proposals conducive to its further enhancement.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe suggested further development of ASEAN-Japan relations based on five main pillars of economics, politics and security, culture and people-to-people relations, promotion of common interests, and cooperation for building a common East Asia community.
Abe pledged that Japan would contribute $52 million to promoting ASEAN-Japan economic cooperation and would disburse 35 billion Yen in five years time for the ASEAN-Japan Youth Exchange Program and other youth training projects for ASEAN member countries.
Japan would also provide $40 million in aid to Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, half of which would be used for the Development Triangle that groups Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.
Leaders of ASEAN and the Republic of Korea (RoK) pledged to speed up negotiations to build the ASEAN-RoK Free Trade Area on investment and service in November this year.
The ASEAN member countries expressed their support for endeavors for peace and denuclearization goals on the Korean peninsula and for the acceleration of inter-Korean dialogues towards the reunification of two Korean regions.
Leaders of ASEAN and India wanted to accelerate and complete negotiations on the ASEAN-India Free Trade Area on schedule. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called for prompt establishment of ASEAN-India FTA and affirmed that ASEAN-India trade would exceed $30 billion in 2007.
(Youth)
Vietnamese
